Skip to content
General News

Industry Icon Honoured With Name Change To Group 1 Event

GBOTA 2 mins read

The NSW Greyhound Breeders, Owners and Trainers’ Association are delighted to announce today the Group 1 Paws of Thunder feature race will be renamed in honour of an icon of the sport, legendary owner and breeder, the late Paul Wheeler.

The GBOTA is also announcing that the event will have a new home on the racing calendar moving from late January to now be run in December.

Mr Wheeler, who died in 2021 was one of the industry’s innovators and acknowledged as a champion in the development and the professionalisation of greyhound racing in NSW and Australia.

After consultation with the Wheeler Family, the Paws of Thunder, one of the most revered races in the State will be renamed The Paul Wheeler Simply the Best.

GBOTA chief executive officer Daniel Weizman made the formal announcement in Sydney this week.

Mr Wheeler’s career spanned more than half a century. In 2016, he was inducted into the Australian Greyhound Racing Hall of Fame. He was an innovator in a number of areas including breeding.

He was involved in greyhound racing from his childhood and was Australia’s largest breeder for more than three decades.

“This is a fitting tribute to one of the industry’s great innovators,” Mr Weizman said.

“The GBOTA is proud to recognise the contribution of Paul Wheeler and the renaming of the Paws of Thunder is a lasting tribute and acknowledgement of the legacy of one of the greats in the greyhound racing industry.

“Paul Wheeler was a straight shooter – who was vocal in criticising decisions with which he disagreed, but also open to praising them when he saw their merit.

“Paul was at the forefront of the fight to save the industry when then Premier Mike Baird tried to ban greyhound racing in NSW. Being part of the campaign to save the greyhound industry is one of his crowning achievements,” Mr Weizman said.

The Paul Wheeler Simply the Best will be a Group 1 race and will feature many of the top sprinters in Australia.

The Paul Wheeler Simply the Best will take place on 21 December 2024 at Wentworth Park with the heats contested the previous week on 14 December 2024.

It will be part of the NSW GBOTA Christmas family extravaganza, bringing together the community for an end of the year celebration and capping a year of greyhound racing.

In addition on the night, The Collerson, in honour of respected greyhound racing journalist Jeff Collerson will be run, along with the Christmas Cheer for Stayers.

In 2020, Jeff Collerson was inducted into the Hall of Fame after dedicating over 60 years of service to the industry.

 

 

Media

More from this category

  • General News
  • 14/02/2025
  • 23:10
Unipart Group LTD

Unipart launches in Vietnam

OXFORD, United Kingdom, Feb. 14, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Unipart, the supply chain performance improvement partner, has launched operations in Vietnam.Unipart’s capabilities in Vietnam include the provision of consultancy, logistics & transportation, planning & supply chain management, improvement technologies, and distributor & wholesaler products and services for customers.Vietnam's thriving manufacturing sector is reported by The World Bank to have grown by an average of 10% annually over the past decade and, according to Statista, Vietnam's e-commerce market is projected to reach $56bn by 2025. In January 2025, Foreign Direct Investment pledges, an indicator of future disbursements, increased by 48.6% from…

  • General News, Political
  • 14/02/2025
  • 17:14
Ahmadiyya Muslim Community Perth

Ahmadiyya Muslim Community WA Denounces Antisemitic Remarks by Sydney Nurses: “We Stand for Compassion, Not Hate”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEDate: Friday, 14th Feb 2025 The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community of Western Australia (WA) vehemently condemns the antisemitic remarks made by two Sydney…

  • Contains:
  • Energy, General News
  • 14/02/2025
  • 07:21
Community Power Agency

From housing squeeze to sustainable solutions: rethinking energy workforce housing

14.02.25 For immediate release Last week, a NSW Parliamentary Committee held hearings to explore solutions for essential worker housing across the state. As the housing crisis fuels the flames of a cost-of-living crisis, the pressure is on to find solutions. Regional communities hosting major infrastructure projects have long faced unique housing challenges due to the boom-and-bust cycles of construction and operation. Renewable energy projects are no exception. As projects in the Illawarra Renewable Energy Zone progress, the region will see a temporary influx of workers. While this can bring economic benefits, it also risks exacerbating housing shortages in communities already…

Media Outreach made fast, easy, simple.

Feature your press release on Medianet's News Hub every time you distribute with Medianet. Pay per release or save with a subscription.